A nation keen to spend Saturday on the couch had to find other things to do as day two of the first Test between Australia and South Africa was washed out in Brisbane.

Play was formally called off at 4pm local time after a final inspection by the umpires Billy Bowden and Asad Rauf took place with drizzle still falling at the Gabba.

Having lost the services of JP Duminy due to a freak Achilles injury during a warm-down exercise on the first evening, South Africa have now lost a day on which they had hoped to press home the advantage won by reaching 255 for 2.

It is the first time a full day's play has been lost to rain in a Brisbane Test since the final action of the 1983 Test between Australia and Pakistan was washed out. The last day's play in a Test match to be completely washed out in Australia was Boxing Day in 1998, when Australia and England met at the MCG.

The rain arrived on Friday evening and barely abated throughout Saturday, leaving the Australian players to sign autographs for those fans who still ventured to the ground.

South Africa's squad returned to their hotel soon after an early lunch was taken, and were ultimately to remain there.

Sunderland manager Gus Poyet says he has "no regrets whatsoever" after being sent off during his side's draw at Hull, while counterpart Steve Bruce admitted they had both acted like "a couple of children" following a touchline altercation

After enduring a tricky start to his Manchester United career, perhaps it is fair that Marcos Rojo celebrated so boisterously as he watched his first professional club Estudiantes beat fierce rivals Gimnasia